Sure, the U.S. Congress is the butt of its fair share of jokes. People call it corrupt, out of touch, and a plague on the very concept of democracy. But give Congress its due: it's also incredibly unproductive.

Amanda Terkel at HuffPo says the current Congress has passed just 219 bills so far this session, with only a week left in the year. They are about to win an award!

The 104th Congress (1995-1996) currently holds the ignominious distinction of being the least productive session of Congress, according to the U.S. House Clerk's Office, which has records going back to 1947. Just 333 bills became law during that two-year period, meaning the 112th Congress needs to send nearly 100 more bills to Obama's desk in the next few days if it wants to avoid going down in history — an unlikely prospect, considering that both chambers are squarely focused on averting the "fiscal cliff" before the new year.